By Jim Fenton
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- Junior Trey Yesu (Monson, Mass.) allowed four hits in eight innings as the Bridgewater State University baseball team improved to 12-3 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference.
Yesu (5-3) struck out eight and didn't walk a batter as the Bears defeated the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, 9-1, Friday afternoon.
First-place BSU (21-11 overall) maintained a 2 1/2-game lead in the MASCAC with six games remaining.
The Trailblazers scored a run in the bottom of the first and had only four singles off Yesu in the first, second, fourth and sixth innings.
Freshman Chase Beach (Orleans, Mass.) retired the side in order in the ninth inning.
The Bears were down, 1-0, when freshman Benjamin Jacob (Pittsfield, Mass.) reached on an infield hit, stole second, went to third and scored on groundouts in the first.
BSU took a 4-1 lead in the second off starter Joshua Bissaillon (East Greenbush, N.Y.).
Senior Philip Messina (Dunkirk, N.Y.) singled to right, junior Riley Thornell (Wareham, Mass.) walked and a run scored when senior a sacrifice bunt by DJ Prampin (Worcester, Mass.) was misplayed.
Freshman Jamie Luna (Warwick, R.I.) drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, a groundout by senior Scott Emerson (Peabody, Mass.) brought in the third run and an error on a ball hit by senior Brendan Flaven (Taunton, Mass.) made it a three-run game.
The Bears added a run in the third when Thornell singled with two outs, went to third on a double by Prampin and scored on an error.
In the sixth, BSU made it 6-1 as Luna hit a two-out home run to left field. It was the first homer of Luna's collegiate career.
The Bears finished the scoring with three in the ninth.
Emerson, senior Kevin Lindsay (East Bridgewater, Mass.) and Flaven walked. Junior Ryan Flaherty (Duxbury, Mass.) hit a sacrifice fly and Messina added a two-run double to left-center.
Flaven and Messina had two hits each for BSU, which finished with nine.
The Bears and MCLA (5-24, 2-14 MASCAC) will play a doubleheader Sunday at noon at Alumni Park. The games have been switched from Saturday due to the forecast of rain.